Q1- Which of the following leaf modifications occur(s) in the desert areas to inhabit water
loss?
1.Hard and waxy leaves
2.Tiny leaves
3.Thorns instead of leaves
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
4.2 and 3 only
5.2 only
6.3 only
7.1, 2 and 3

Q2- With reference to the circumstances in Indian agriculture, the concept of "Conservation
Agriculture" assumes significance. Which of the following fall under the Conservation
Agriculture?
1. Avoiding the monoculture practices
2. Adopting minimum tillage
3. Avoiding the cultivation of plantation crops
4. Using crop residues to cover soil surface
5. Adopting spatial and temporal rop sequencing/crop rotations.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) 1, 3 and 4
(b) 2, 3, 4 and 5
(c) 2, 4 and 5
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 5

As the rains abate in Kerala and parts of Kodagu district in Karnataka, the loss of lives and
the devastation of infrastructure and crops is apparent. However, as rebuilding is planned,
what is often ignored is the soil that has been washed away. While roads and houses will
be rebuilt, and crop losses compensated partially through insurance, the gradual loss of
soil productivity can have a lasting impact on the local economy.
Soil degradation due to flooding is a serious concern. A 2014 review of soil degradation in
India by multiple institutions shows that an estimated 14 million hectares suffer soil
degradation due to flooding annually
The impact of floods on soil was also studied in detail following the 2009 floods in North
Karnataka, which killed over 170 people and caused an estimated loss of over 16,500
crore. Researchers from the National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning
(NBSS&LUP) and other institutes estimate that 13 flood-hit districts lost 287 million tonnes
of top soil and soil nutrients across 10.75 million hectares of farmland. Under market
prices, the replacement of nutrients such as nitrates, phosphates and iron would have cost
1,625 crore, while another T853 crore would have been spent on replenishing organic
material lost. To recover and replace would take a "considerable" amount of time, and a
steadfast programme of recovery, they noted.

Nine years later, there is no comprehensive scheme for recovery, and the effect of the
floods is still visible on the ground. A soil profile of a few affected districts, done under the
State's integrated watershed scheme, shows large swathes of these areas having
"shallow or very shallow" soil depth, organic carbon deficiency, and low productivity of
land.
In the case of Kerala and Kodagu, the undulation and force of the water would have led to
severe soil and land erosion, says Rajendra Hegde, Principal Scientist of NBSS&LUP in
Bengaluru. "You can see it in the murky colour of the rivers and swollen stream," he says.
"Soil, which has taken thousands of years to form through natural processes and through
recent inputs by farmers, is being swept away, to be dumped in reservoirs or in the sea."
Not all floods are bad for the soil, as seen in the oft-occurring floods along the banks of
the Ganga, Kosi, Brahmaputra and other rivers taking birth in the Himalayas. There, the
gushing river emanating from the mountains carries with it loosened alluvial soil, and not
only washes over farmlands, but also replenishes flood plains with fertile soil. However, in
south and central India, floods wash away rich, weathered soil, which are deposited in
reservoirs or as sand bars along the river bed or in the sea. Any rehabilitation programme
must consider this lost soi